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Friday, September 9, 2011

Unpacking: Who's Your Joshua?

10. You should have three types of friends. 1. Someone who mentors you. 2. Peers. 3. Someone you're mentoring. All three are crucially important. If you're missing one, you're doing it wrong.

Many years ago, Joel and I were leaders in our church's high school youth group. One year, I remember we taught a bible study called Project 365, where we led the kids through the Bible over the course of a year. As went through the Old Testament, we learned about Moses and Joshua and the unique mentoring relationship they developed as Moses prepared to pass the baton of leadership.We talked this over for awhile, and how that was beneficial to both of them. We developed a philosophy that it was important to be both Moses and Joshua... That it was important to have someone wiser than you in your life, someone who could teach you, shepherd you, lovingly correct you. But, we also came to believe that it was important to also be someone's Moses... to share what you've learned with someone who needs it. "Who's your Joshua?" quickly became our study's catch-phrase as a reminder of the relationships to look for.Even though I was the leader, that was a lesson that always stuck with me after that... even now, nearly 15 years later, the phrase pops into my head and makes me smile. But, it also makes me examine my own relationships. It reminds me to make sure I have people in my life who will lovingly guide and teach me, and also to make sure that I am pouring into someone else's life as well.Who's YOUR Joshua? And whose Joshua are you?